The New Music Seminar is rolling across the country this year. It might not have come up on your radar screen, but it came up on mine. The seminar’s creator and producer, Tom Silverman, founder of Tommy Boy Records, is a friend from college.

Tom (on the left) made a seminal contribution to hip hop when he discovered Grandmaster Flash and recorded the hip hop classic, Planet Rock; then came Queen Latifah and Naughty by Nature and others.

The purpose of the New Music Seminar, which began in 1981, is to give aspiring artist in all music genres the knowledge and tools they need to succeed in the music business which, according to Tom, is in a period of profound change. No longer do new artists need to focus their time, attention and energy on getting signed by a record label and the slim chance they will be funded and made into a star.

Today, record labels rarely take chances on new artists. Instead, digital technology, the internet and social media now make it possible, sometimes even free, for artists to do it themselves. Wikipedia covers the history of the New Music Seminar in detail at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Music_Seminar

More people want to become professional musicians than ever. In fact, the number of records from new artists has risen from 79,000 in 2007, to over 110,000 in 2008, to an estimated 145,000 in 2009 – almost double in 2 years. Although competition has increased significantly, online tools are so readily available, if someone has 1000 loyal fans and tours throughout the year, they can now make a living doing what they love. But the key to doing what you love, according to Tom, is you’ve got to know your fans.

Anyone who owns or manages a business or brand, or is thinking of starting one, can benefit from this lesson in the music business; especially if you thought you needed to focus time and attention blasting the word out to as many people as you can.

This quote comes from Jim Farley, Group VP of Marketing at Ford, who this year moved 25% of his marketing budget out of traditional media and into digital marketing and social media. According to Jim, when new products like the Ford Fiesta are pivotal to company growth, “the company must rely on others to tell the story.” That’s Jim’s company up in the left and his constituents on the right. Who would you trust? For Ann Handley’s full interview with Jim, go to http://ow.ly/1n3g9O

In a related move, Pepsi, for the first time in 23 years, did not have commercials on the Super Bowl. Instead, the company is spending $20 million on a social media campaign called, The Pepsi Refresh Project, where users give ideas to Pepsi for ways to refresh their communities.

Maybe these moves reflect the facts that:

90% of all purchase decisions begin online

75% of people shop online before they buy offline

85% are looking for an independent review

They have an average of 130 friends on Facebook; an average of 127 followers on Twitter

Positive perceptions of a company increase by 36% if there’s a blog on their website

14% of people trust advertising

Only 18% of TV ad campaign ever generate a positive return on investment

I think Pepsi’s Super Bowl commercials are some of the most iconic advertising, ever, and believe their effectiveness was probably much greater than average. I was sorry and sad to see them exit the Super Bowl, altogether.

But, for those 86% who don’t trust advertising, now they hear about Pepsi from who they do trust, their friends.

The U.S. Small Business Administration is giving social media workshops at UCONN campuses this March and April.

52% of people in the U.S. work at businesses with 20 people or less. Small businesses have led the country out of every recession. Many believe, including comScore, social media will be a big asset this time around.

Since I’m one of them, I’m grateful to contribute along with Mike Rogers of Brainloaf, http://www.brainloaf.com and other small business owners (featured below) that have used social media successfully. Here are 7 social media tips to build brands.

Strategy trumps technology: A business strategy and social media strategy are the same thing. In using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, apps etc., ask yourself how these amplify the business strategy and increase customer engagement and trust in your brand?

Set measurements and expectations first: Don’t believe anyone who says you can’t measure social media. You can know more about buying behaviors on the internet (e.g. where customers come from, how long they spend with you, what they do and where they go) than in your store. Plus Google Analytics and bit.ly links are free. If you’re not convinced, David Berkowitz has a great presentation on 100 measurements at: http://bit.ly/pmadb

Social media takes time: Small business owners, understandably, have lots of priorities. Manage what you can handle. Customers come first. Social media is going to be around for a while.

Live with the ups and downs: What you want is a following and fans. It doesn’t happen overnight. It doesn’t happen the way you thought it would, but, stick with it, and it does happen. Enjoy the journey.

Not all social networks are equal: In every case I’ve seen, some social networks do better than others depending on the unique nature of every business. For AJ Bombers, a burger joint, it was Twitter, acting as a virtual host, and a video from Chris Brogan. For a utilitarian product like Blendtec blenders, it was unconventional product demos from Founder/CEO, Tom Dickson. You can learn from their experiences below and expect it will happen for you.

Have your online house in order: If you follow tips 1-5, you will experience increased traffic. It will go to your web site, the most important asset in any social media program. There’s an old saying: Nothing kills a bad product faster than good advertising. Today, nothing kills a good social media program faster than a bad web site.

Believe in your product: Joe Sorge, owner of AJ Bombers, who now has a book, #Twitterworks (http://twitterworks.tv), spoke in a video call from Milwaukee. Joe says his Twitter page, AJBombers, has increased weekly sales +25%. What was most important to his success? “If I didn’t believe AJ Bombers made the best cheeseburger on the planet, social media wouldn’t have accomplished a thing.”

If you’re in the area, the next workshop is April 27th at UCONN in Stamford from 6pm to 9 pm. Details will be at: http://bit.ly/bW22Ml

I had the privilege of being on a radio show panel with some great people. The topic: “How Social Media Gains Trust and Advocacy in Marketing with Women.” Since women make 85% of buying decisions and are faster adopters of social media than men, it was a timely and interesting topic. The radio show was “Real Women on Health” and the panel was:

Kelley Connors, President of Real Women on Health!, a multi-channel community with a radio show, top-rated women’s health web site and significant affiliate partnerships

Tom H. C. Anderson, CEO of Anderson Analytics, a market research consultancy, and chairperson of LinkedIn’s most active networking group, Next Generation Market Research

Rob Petersen, President of BarnRaisers, an online marketing solutions company using social media and proven relationship marketing principles

Cassie Holm, National Strategic Alliance Director of Real Women on Health!, was the moderator

Everyone took the opportunity to learn from one another. Here are 10 tips to gain trust and advocacy with women using social media.

Invite in: Women are 3X less likely to care about the size of their network than men. Size may not matter but being shown personal attention does.

Understand who you’re talking to: 74% post pictures of family/friends and 71% talk about what they’re doing now as opposed to 60% and 58% for men. Take advantage of the opportunity and get to know them.

Listen and respond: Listening is a fundamental skill but, equally important, is proof you did.

Set guidelines and expectations: You can’t read body language on a social network. Security and privacy are big issues. Create a comfortable environment.

Be transparent: If you’re not part of the group and “trolling” for business purposes, you are very, very likely to be found out so be open about who you are.

Talk rather than target: When women are online, 50% are connecting with family and friends, reading someone else’s blog or posting a comment. They’re socializing so shouldn’t you?

Respect values: Dove ran a campaign on Facebook, “12 going on 20.” It asked young teens to describe what mattered when they were 5, 10 and 15 and how it influenced them today. It’s a great example of how social marketing showed respect for values.

Engage rather than sell: 60% or more are uploading picture or watching videos when online. Work as a co-creator, not a marketer.

Social media = social networking + social issues: It called “social” media for a reason. Make the most of both of them. Your audience will appreciate you did.

Give back – it’s part of the culture: You get back more when you give. That’s what we’re trying to do.

If the differences between men and women are widely acknowledged in best-selling books, is it time to stop thinking about social media as a unisex voice?

It’s already well-known that women make 85% of the buying decisions in this country but did you know:

65% of people using social media are women

60% are boomer women

55+ is the fastest growing segment on Facebook

52% of searches women do are for someone else

85% are looking for an independent review by another woman

The numbers get even higher on the subject of health care where virtually all health care buying decisions are made by women, not just for themselves and their families but as caregivers to parents, relatives and extended family.

A woman named Kelley Connors is doing something about it. Kelley started an online community called Real Women on Health; http://realwomenonhealth.com a place for Baby Boomer women featuring candid conversations and expert commentary about health and wellness. Kelley started the community, after she learned from study after study, women who talk with other women about the same health interests or conditions actually have better outcomes.

As proof women want to share their collective wisdom in social media, in just a few months, Kelley has built a multi-channel community with over 10,000 members on her top-rated community web-site, blog-talk radio show, Facebook Fan Page, Twitter and LinkedIn accounts and received a content sponsorship grant from the National Women’s Health Resource Center, the largest clearing house for women’s health care information. When linked to affiliates partners, Real Women on Health reaches 5,000,000 women.

Kelley is using Real Women on Health for moderated conversations with advocates about health and wellness products and services this high value group really wants. She tries to listen with questions to her community like “what are the health topics you’re most passionate about?”

Listening skills are important because women believe they are misunderstood by:

59% of food marketers

66% in health care

77% in automotive

84% in investing

According to the Harvard Business Review, their primary sentiment with marketers is frustration. If you don’t believe me, ask the woman up top.

Do you believe marketers listen and understand you?

Listen to a live blog talk radio show, How Social Media Gains Trust and Advocacy in Marketing with Women, on March 9th at 6:30. Here’s your invitation from Kelley to join the conversation: http://bit.ly/aWOJwD

This quote comes from Jim Farley, Group VP of Marketing at Ford, who this year moved 25% of his marketing budget out of traditional media and into digital marketing and social media. According to Jim, when new products like the Ford Fiesta are pivotal to company growth, “the company must rely on others to tell the story.” That’s Jim’s company on the left and his constituents on the right. Who would you believe? For Ann Handley’s full interview with Jim, go to http://ow.ly/1n3g9O

In a related move, Pepsi, for the first time in 23 years, will not have any commercials in the Super Bowl. Instead, the company is spending $20 million on a social media campaign called, The Pepsi Refresh Project, where users give ideas to Pepsi for ways to refresh their communities.

It’s a coincidence there are so many numbers in the 20’s in the first two paragraph, but there’s nothing coincidental about the facts that:

90% of all purchase decisions begin online

75% of people shop online before they buy offline

85% are looking for an independent review

They have an average of 130 friends on Facebook; an average of 127 followers on Twitter (again, just a coincidence the number are so close) I think 🙂

Positive perceptions of a company increase by 36% if there’s a blog on their website

14% of people trust advertising

Only 18% of TV ad campaign ever generate a positive return on investment and Pepsi spent over 142,000,000 on Super Bowl ads over the last decade

Now I think Pepsi’s Super Bowl commercials are some of the most iconic advertising, ever, and believe their effectiveness was probably much greater than average. I’m sorry and sad to see them exit the Super Bowl, altogether.

But, for those 86% who don’t trust advertising, now they’ll hear about Pepsi from who they do trust, their friends.

Remember that Google Trends chart 2 posts down on Jan. 4 (see below). Well, do you think the year is off to an interesting start? Would you agree with these companies decisions?

Believe it or not, in the mid 1980’s, Harley-Davidson was on the brink of bankruptcy.

Founded in 1917, Harley flourished during World War I as the first motorcycle to be broadly adopted for combat services. By the 1970’s, the design had remained basically unchanged. The bikes were expensive and far inferior in performance, handling, and quality to Japanese motorcycles. The brand name was mocked as “Hardly Able.”

But, as the Harvard Business Review tells it, after examining every aspect of their business, “Harley management recognized the brand had developed as a ‘community-based phenomenon.’ The ‘brotherhood’ of riders, united by a shared ethos, offered Harley the basis for a strategic repositioning as the one motorcycle manufacturer that understood bikers on their own terms.”

Executives were required to spend time in the field with customers and bring their insights back to the firm. What they discovered, after looking at everything, was the company’s most valuable asset and future was its advocates.

In the early 2000’s, with their landmark study on brand communities, Thomas O’Guinn and Alfred Muniz concluded it’s part of our DNA as human beings to share our brand experiences with others, especially if they’re favorable. Maybe that’s why 4 out of 5 people write positive reviews online (source: Groundswell).

Today, one of the more visible manifestations of Harley’s comeback is a brand community called http://www.hdtalking.com. Here, Harley owners share pictures, their vacations, jokes, where to get hard to find parts, buy and sell Harleys and 7 Harley mechanics are online.

It’s a community of over 26,500 built by Harley loyalists, not the company, and maintained entirely with user-generated content. And they welcome every new member by name, including their newest, SpyDer Monkey. The brand community is a negligible marketing expense and a major source of business vitality.

Do you think Saab could have concluded the same thing? And, if they had taken similar steps at the right time, might things have been different? Do you know the value of your advocates and steps you could be taking to nurture and show appreciation for the backbone of your brand?